The South African, Issue 541, 19 November 2013

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26 November - 2 December 2013

Issue 542

“WE DON’T WANT YOUR DIRTY VOTES” | Guy Mulvaney sets out to obtain Dr Mamphela Ramphele’s opinions on a wide range of issues

BY GUY MULVANEY

DR Mamphela Ramphele appears in a state of bewilderment as she enters Sandton’s Maslow Hotel for our breakfast interview.

Citing a bizarre situation which has unfolded in a shanty town, Bekkersdal [46 km west of Johannesburg] she explains how residents were insulted by the ANC Gauteng Premier, Nomvula Mokonyane in response to their complaints concerning service delivery failure. [Ramphele recently visited Bekkersdal.]

Mokonyane delivers her verdict in the form of, “we don’t want your dirty votes.” A totally inappropriate response and thoughtless choice of words. Ironical, since the protestors ‘filth’ is a direct result of her government’s failure to deliver safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and electricity.

[R1.2 billion was allocated for infrastructure development in 2004.)

I set out to obtain Dr Ramphele’s opinions on a wide range of issues.

Trends in the 2009 general election reflect a highly disillusioned electorate. 12 million of the potential 23 million voters did not register to vote or registered, but failed to vote. Strangely voters are not turning to the opposition parties in significant numbers. The Democratic Alliance [DA] gained a marginal increase of 4.29% Recent surveys indicate that 40% of those who voted for the ruling party in 2009 will not vote for them again. There may not be a strong official opposition, but that

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will change in 2014. There is a great recognition by all opposition parties to reduce the ANC vote to less than 50%.

Your prediction for the 2014 elections?

The ANC vote will be reduced to between 40-49%. The DA should be 25- 35% and if Agang runs a strong campaign, somewhere between 19-20% Agang and the DA share common ground. Is there a possibility of an alliance in the 2014 elections?

Absolutely. Our aim now is for Agang to establish a neutral platform with a purpose of getting all the parties to form a coalition.

Hopefully this would entice the DA to join up as well.

In this week’s Radio 702 interview you stated, “All cultural groups in SA are male dominated.” Augmented by your personal wealth of R55 million as well as your matriarchal influences, you pose a serious threat to South African males.

Besides your link to the Biko name, you are relatively unknown. In a misogynist society, like South Africa, what real chance do you have of becoming the first female president?

Any country will rise to the aspirations of a leader who presents him or herself. Women naturally bequeath to their offspring and have a better inter-generational connection. We are good at multitasking, so the more complex tasks like reconstruction and transformation of the society are better suited for woman. I have a chance because I have a good track

INSIDE:

p2 | String of London bike deaths claims South African

p7 | Going GAGA for Yarn Bombing p14 | No Deal for Bananas as former Zim president’s son accused of benefit fraud

|PASSION FOR FREEDOM: In 2013, DR Mamphela Ramphele announced the

formation of a new political party; named Agang (Sotho for “Build.”)

record. I was the first black woman vice-chancellor at the University Of Cape Town. My record speaks for itself.

You recently said “the South African education system was better before the advent of democracy.”

We need well trained, confident and enabling teachers in the way that they approach education.

Teachers need to be more incentivised, to be more passionate and goal directed. The alliance

between South African Democratic Teachers Union [SADTU] and the ANC is part of the rot of our education system. The government is failing as a regulator. That is because SADTU is the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions [COSATU] and the ANC’s arrogance comes from the union’s ability to mobilise support.

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“We don’t want String of your dirty votes” London bike deaths claims South African continued from page 1

| A South African Londoner, Roger William de

Klerk, has been named as the victim of a fatal collision with a bus near East Croydon station.

The Forest Hill resident was struck near the corner of Addiscombe Road and Cherry Orchard Road on Tuesday 19 November as the third in a spate of six cyclists’s deaths

BY BRETT PETZER THE cyclists involved might be considered the victims of Britain’s change from a country where cycling is still seen by millions as a pastime to one where the bicycle is understood and accepted as a means of transport and an essential commuting technology for those ill-served by main commuter lines or priced out of rail, car and bus commuting options.

De Klerk, who was 43, was on the verge of an exciting new period of his life as he was setting up his own business on the back of years of experience in publishing.

Paramedics strove to save his life, but the Saffa was declared dead at St George’s Hospital in Tooting later that afternoon. An inquest has been opened and adjourned at Croydon Coroner’s Court.18th birthday) and get a Proof of Registration sticker in your green bar-coded ID book This means that expatriate South Africans should take the opportunity to register for the elections during any upcoming holidays in Mzansi – this can be done at any municipal office (Call the IEC at 0800 11 8000 to find the registration centre closest to you in South Africa).

Registering in South Africa may be well worth a morning’s worth of queueing during your holiday as the South African High Commission has not yet announced registration dates for South Africans in the UK. London’s building of cycling infrastructure aimed at a Dutch and Danish-style cycling culture while limiting itself to cheap, underengineered interventions that are still mostly cosmetic (especially the article of faith by which adding blue paint to a road protects cyclists’ bodies from HGVs weighing tonnes). The public’s rapid and enthusiastic embrace of cycling has gone very much as planned, with ridership surging year-on-year. When thousands of new and returning cyclists chose to entrust their physical safety to an inadequate and patchy network, tragedy resulted. Even so, as Curtis pointed out in the Evening Standard, safety is technically improving: in the decade to 2012, bicycle journeys in the UK rose by 40% while deaths fell from 20 to 14. Nonetheless, in an advanced society struggling to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels and the congestion of its major urban centres, a 40% rise in a decade isn’t nearly enough. And 14 is still far too many.

in the UK indicate that there has been a dramatic increase in the number of South Africans living in the England and Scotland [60 000 over the last decade.] What would you do to encourage these migrants [many of whom are highly skilled] to come home?

The hope in South Africa lies in the immense natural, mineral and human resources. Agang says to everyone come into the circle, there is room for everyone.

[Agang’s logo is a circle with interlinking colours representing all the languages in the country.]

Do you see the government’s labour policy of affirmative action as a barrier to entry? How would you address migration?

The government has lost sight of the outcome. ANC does not have a migration policy in place. Countries like Australia and Canada are brilliant as they have a strategic migration policy. We are losing skilled workers yet asylum seekers

are streaming through our borders.

There are millions of homeless voters in SA. The country is crying out for a strong multicultural official opposition party. At this point this is not a reality. Alternatively a mediator is urgently required to bring in all the opposition parties under one umbrella and reign in the disaffected ANC members. Nobody can deny that the arch-nemesis of the ANC, Dr Mamphela Ramphele certainly has the right credentials: an office bearer at the highest echelon of business and academia, a brilliant mind, an iconic name, a passion for the poor and a loathing for incompetence and corruption.

This beautiful country of ours must not allow any party to rule with impunity and abuse the rights of citizens. In her own words Ramphele says ‘2014 is all about stopping the betrayal of the promise of freedom.’ The begging question now is, can South Africans see past their gender bias and afford this brilliant woman the opportunity to redefine the political landscape?

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Nicól studied journalism in Cape Town, South Africa, and enjoys creative writing, illustrating, singing and travelling. She has just returned from travelling in South East Asia, and has joined our team, working as a journalist and designer.

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State to compel all SA pupils to learn one African language

BY BRETT PETZER

THE Department of Basic Education (DBE) is calling on the public inside and outside South Africa to comment on the government’s plans to make the teaching of an African language compulsory from grade 1. The scheme will be piloted in the Foundation phase, at Grade 1 level, from next year, with plans to roll the initiative out nationally from 2015.

All South African students will learn an African language for the length of their secondary school careers and will take the language up to Matric. A DBE spokesperson, Elijah Mhlanga, has told the press that the department “values the constructive comments of the public.”

The Minister of Basic Education,

Angie Motshekga, has announced that this move is intended as a fulfilment of the state’s Constitutional obligation to promote progressively and as speedily as is practicable the flourishing and inclusion of previously marginalised languages. The indigenous languages plan is in line with the National Development Plan, which calls the need for South Africans to communicate with and acknowledge each other in a language other than European and European-derived languages essential to nation building and social cohesion.

The deadline for international and in-country South Africans to comment on the proposal is February 12 2014. Submissions can be made via email to publiccomments@dbe.gov.za

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Thuli Madonsela stands her ground

BY AYUB NOUINOU

She speaks in the hushed, nonthreatening tones of a primary school teacher explaining a bad school report to some indignant parents.

But Thuli Madonsela’s conciliatory demeanour is misleading.

As South Africa’s chief corruptionbuster - officially known as the Public Protector - the dignified 51-year-old lawyer has earned a reputation for ferocious resolve in a country increasingly swamped by allegations of official graft.

“Things have just turned in a strange way,” as she put it this week, with typical understatement.

For months, the Public Protector has been investigating the government’s decision to spend 206m rand (£12m) of taxpayers’ money on “security upgrades” for President Jacob Zuma’s private rural home in a village called Nkandla.

So have the increasingly robust efforts of the state to bury, block or generally sidestep any final public reckoning on the issue of exactly who paid whom for what.

President Zuma has repeatedly insisted that he paid for the renovations himself and that the security upgrades - which reportedly include underground tunnels and a bunker - were a separate matter.

After many delays, the Public Protector prepared to release her

own forensic analysis of what has been dubbed Nkandla-gate.

At which point Zuma’s closest aides leapt to his defence, rushing to present Ms Madonsela with notice of a court action to block the draft report’s release, on the grounds that the president’s domestic security might be compromised.

“Did they really just say that?” Ms Madonsela asked, remembering the astonishment of her team when the court papers arrived. “Our report was prepared with extreme care to avoid any security breaches.

“It’s a straightforward investigation. We’re a friend to government when we conduct our investigations because we show how money can be clawed back.”

Then, with a demure smile, she

slipped in the knife: “Perhaps people speak fast and don’t have the opportunity to read. Ministers have never cited any constitutional or statutory provision that gives them the rights they claim in the court papers.”

Rather it is the danger that South Africa’s young institutions - the prosecuting authority, the state intelligence services, the public protector’s office and so on - are being weakened by political forces anxious to protect individuals from legitimate scrutiny.

“I don’t really fear for my job,” said Ms Madonsela, after being asked about newspaper reports that she was being threatened with arrest. “I can’t really know how safe I am. I’m not a security expert.”

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Darling South African Ladies Networking

by RONEL VAN ZYL

DARLING magazine and its editor Karine Torr hosted another of their popular South African Ladies Networking events on 19 November in Wimbledon Village.

Wine and snacks from Sardinian Deli and Vallebona and a musical performance by Malory Torr made everyone feel at home.

Guest speakers and main sponsors of the evening were Cashkows, who discussed changes in South African financial regulations.

Win a ÂŁ20 Spur meal voucher

Visit www.ukspur.co.uk to locate your nearest Spur

If you have been spotted in the circle on this page please email your address to editor@thesouthafrican.com and your voucher will be posted to you.

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Strong South African flavour at TEDxEuston 2013 event in London

| Producer and TV presenter Redi Tlhabi, ‘Black Like Me’ founder Herman Mashaba and Aids treatment activist Vuyiseka Dubula are the trio of South African speakers at the fifth annual TEDxEuston event, dedicated to sharing ideas and inspiring Africans, on Saturday 7 December

by DAVID MANNALL TED-LICENSED annual event TEDxEuston, dedicated to sharing ideas and inspiring Africans, has once again delivered an exciting line-up of thinkers and doers, three of them South African.

“Our exciting line-up of presenters was chosen because they’re among those people pushing boundaries, challenging the status-quo and defining a new kind of normal for Africa; reflecting a view of the continent seldom seen in mainstream media,” said TedxEuston team member Ama Akuamoah.

The South African speakers: Vuyiseka Dubula Vuyiseka Dubula was elected General Secretary of Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) in 2008.

Founded in 1998, the TAC advocates for increased access to treatment, care and support for people living with HIV/Aids. The TAC holds the SA government to account for health care provision, has actively campaigned against ignorant government AIDS deniers and challenged the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies to be less greedy when dealing with developing nations.

Herman Mashaba Herman Mashaba, born in apartheid South Africa, had his

Nelson Mandela’s Living Legacy Settling into the Presidency - and winning over Graça

AGED 76, Madiba faced various ailments, and although exhibiting continued energy, he felt isolated and lonely. He often entertained celebrities, such as Michael Jackson, Whoopi Goldberg, and the Spice Girls, and befriended a number of ultra-rich businessman, like Harry Oppenheimer of AngloAmerican, as well as British monarch Elizabeth II on her March

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academic dreams shattered when his university shut down due to political unrest in the late 1970’s.

He subsequently started selling crockery on a commission-only basis, then in 1985 launched hair-care manufacturing business “Black Like Me” from the boot of his car beginning a rags-to-riches journey that could inspire many to make their own success story happen.

Redi Tlhabi Redi Tlhabi has just published her first book; Endings and Beginnings (Jacana), which tells the story of her painful journey through a death-marred childhood in Orlando East, a journey in which she eventually finds peace and puts to rest her demons.

Journalist, producer and TV presenter, she hosts the breakfast show on Talk Radio 702 and AlJazeera’s African current affairs

show ‘South to North’.

Now in its firth year, the event on Saturday 7 December at Mermaid Conference Centre is themed “Ripple Effect” and promises to provoke and inspire.

Tickets are still available to see the ripple form at tedxeuston.com/TedxEuston/

1995 state visit to South Africa, resulting in strong criticism from ANC anti-capitalists. Despite his opulent surroundings, Mandela lived simply, donating a third of his 552,000 rand annual income to the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, which he had founded in 1995. Although speaking out in favour of freedom of the press and befriending many journalists, Mandela was critical of much of the country’s media, noting that it was overwhelmingly owned and run by middle-class whites and believing that it focused too much on scaremongering around crime.

Changing clothes several times a day, after assuming the presidency, one of Mandela’s trademarks was his use of Batik shirts, known as “Madiba shirts”, even on formal occasions.

In December 1994, Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, was finally published.

In late 1994 he attended the 49th conference of the ANC in Bloemfontein, at which a more militant National Executive was

elected, among them Winnie Mandela; although she expressed an interest in reconciling, Nelson initiated divorce proceedings in August 1995. By 1995 he had entered into a relationship with Graça Machel, a Mozambican political activist 27 years his junior who was the widow of former president Samora Machel. They had first met in July 1990, when she was still in mourning, but their friendship grew into a partnership, with Machel accompanying him on many of his foreign visits.

She turned down Mandela’s first marriage proposal, wanting to retain some independence and dividing her time between Mozambique and Johannesburg.

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Built ambassadors… SA’s top ten European embassies

| With elections approaching, a trip to the nearest South African embassy or High Commission might be in the works for

many readers. Here are the buildings to watch out for on your special queueing-and-stamping days in the near future

by BRETT PETZER CLOTHES maketh the (wo) man – and embassies make the country. How does South Africa’s diplomatic real estate actually look? A brief tour around European capitals.

1. South Africa House, London, UK Herbert Baker’s great masterpiece of pre-Balfour Declaration Imperial feeling sits plumb on Trafalgar Square very near the High Commissions of the other British dominions which were self-governing at the time.

If the service isn’t always perfect, the building is – or was. The South African readers have written in regularly to decry the state of repair of the building, which houses priceless South Africana including art and wood panelling.

2. SA Embassy, Berlin, Germany It is right that the Rainbow Nation’s most modern, most African embassy finds itself in Berlin – a city that has known a painful and complex history, but

| South Africa House lit up at night

that also offers a bright example of the possibilities of growth that lie in reexamining that history intelligently and courageously.

The Berlin embassy has made architectural waves since it opened in 2003 in the Tiergartenstraße. At four storeys high it was the first South African Embassy building to be built after the end of apartheid in 1994.

3. SA Embassy, Paris, France

| Berlin

Built in 1974, South Africa’s embassy to the City of Light may not contribute very much to its immediate 7th arrondissement context of creamy white stone and discreet Haussmanian splendour, but the building by Jean-Marie Garet, Gérard Lambert, Jean Thierrart and the Centre d’études L’Oeuf was very much in the spirit of its time. A bit more Centre Pompidou than Eiffel Tower, but probably a very comfortable place to queue for a visa in.

4. SA Embassy, Italy, Rome Very close to the Villa Borghese, South Africa’s embassy to the Republic of Italy lies along the Via Tanaro, a street of stately 19thcentury villas. It is open to the public only in the mornings – more information is at www.sudafrica.it 5. SA Embassy, Madrid, Spain For the meeting point between two such spirited countries, Mzansi’s mission at Calle Claudio Coello 91 keeps it very subtle.

6. SA Embassy to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Hague, the Netherlands The beautiful old brick building at Wassenaersweg 40 is very close to the city’s fine Haagse Bos park.

The embassy features a lively website with links to fascinating historical information, such as the Netherlands‘ proud history of supporting the fight against Apartheid. Find out more at www. zuidafrika.nk 7. South African Embassy, Lisbon, Portugal Given the glory and consequence of South Africa’s more than 500-

year relationship with Portugal, it is a sobering thought that the embassy of the Rainbow Nation to the first European nation to see the Cape is this rather humble office down a side street in Lisbon. Although brightened by the Ndebele patterns above the entrance, there is no statue to the many Portuguese sailors who opened South Africa up to Europe, for better or worse. It seems more is needed. For once, however, the embassy website at www.embaixada-africadosul.pt carries some kind of warmth and an acknowledgement of shared history. It includes a touching quote by the major modern Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, who spent his entire childhood and early youth in Durban, eventually graduating at UCT: “Everything is worthwhile if the soul is not small”. Or the Embassy building.

8. South African Embassy to the Kingdom of Sweden, Stockholm, Sweden Open in the mornings, and closed all day Wednesday, the Stockholm embassy seems a rather restful place. The website is the very worst of DIRCO’s in Europe: www.southafrica.se 9. South African Embassy to the Kingdom of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark The flag is all that tells you that this house represents an African regional superpower rather than a prosperous optometrist’s practice, but there you are: a beautifully kept house near the centre of Copenhagen is a place you

| The Pompidou Centre-era embassy in Paris and the cosy one in Copenhagen

| Rome

wouldn’t mind parking your bike while you wait for that unabridged birth certificate.

10. South African Embassy to the Republic of Poland, Warsaw South Africa’s diplomatic representation to the former Soviet sphere of influence are tremendously lacklustre considering the support the Soviet Union leant to the ANC and other liberation movements in exile.

Does this perhaps reflect the eagerness of a post-1994 young country to convince the world – and the world of capitalism – that it was economically orthodox, diplomatically pro-Atlantic, and open for business? Call the Warsaw Embassy between weekdays between 9am and noon to find out.

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Old friends Masekela and Willis open the London Jazz Festival in remarkable form

| South Africa’s Hugh Masekela and America’s Larry Willis treated London jazz lovers to pieces from their

recent album as well as fascinating anecdotes about music greats like Satchmo and Miriam Makeba

by NOMA PELE HUGH Masekela and Larry Willis wowed the packed out audience at The Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, on Friday 15 November with a collection of songs from their 2012 album entitled Friends and other jazz classics as part of the EFG London Jazz Festival, supported by musician/performance poet and writer Zena Edwards.

Willis met Masekela while the South African was in exile, studying in New York. He happened to spot Willis playing for the university band and the two have been friends ever since.

Masekela attributed his American style jazz technique to Willis, who took it quite humbly, smiled, nodded and turned to the piano.

The pair started the set with their beautifully fresh rendition of Herbie Hancock’s ‘Cantaloupe

Island’ and continued to cover the greats such as Louis Armstrong, Miriam Makeba, Charlie Parker and Tom Bell.

Before each song Masekela would share a story relating to the artist whose song they were covering, and each was a gold nugget of history not generally known to the public, like for instance the fact that Louis Armstrong would bring back sweets and treats to the kids in New York when he came back from doing shows out of town. Masekela also relayed stories from the ’60s when he and Willis would go from club to club, jamming all day, to riding through New York to catch Thelonius Monk and Joe Henderson play.

The rich history of their influence really shone through each note on the piano and trumpet as the duo paid homage to their favourite artists. Their

| Image: Andy Sheppard

skill, musicality, passion and precise delivery was easily picked up even by a novice such as me. I’ve previously seen Hugh Masekela in concert, but never like this.

He’s an icon and national hero in South Africa and always known

Going GAGA for Yarn Bombing

| On 1 December a ‘yarn bomb’ will detonate at a secret location in the

centre of Stratford, and everyone is invited. This festive season you can support poor communities in South Africa by adding to this beautiful project

by STAFF REPORTER SOMETHING wonderful is happening in the centre of Stratford-upon-Avon on 1 December – World Aids Day and the start of Advent.

‘A large tree will be ‘yarnbombed’ forming The Remembering Tree. You can give the gift that gives back by supporting this South African project.

What is yarn bombing?

Yarn bombing is a knitted, contemporary, visual art form taking the world by storm. Think crochet graffiti although easier to clean up and not harmful to the environment.

‘Yarn bombing’ basically means covering everyday objects in a woollen jumper.

GAGA UK, a charity based in Bidford on Avon, is behind the campaign. They work in Southern Africa and elsewhere, supporting children and communities in the poorest areas.

Their aim is to develop education, healthcare, welfare and empowerment, working with many projects. All funds raised will go to supporting their work in Africa.

The Remembering Tree concept was inspired by and developed in collaboration with Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust, South Africa.

The Remembering Tree will be a

place to come together and reflect and celebrate those you love or have loved and lost. The tree will be visible from many parts of the town and will act as a colourful focal point over the festive period, giving people space and time to celebrate life in all its colours, and be in place for the duration of Christmas and into the New Year.

Making a donation, celebrating a loved one and helping communities and children in Africa are all wonderful gifts, and The Remembering Tree gives you all three.

How does it work?

The Remembering Tree will be made up of 1500 crocheted squares, made from synthetic wool which is harmless to the tree and surrounding environment, these have been produced in South Africa by women from poor communities to help boost their income and give them new skills.

The organisers believe it will be the biggest tree ever yarn bombed in the UK. After the yarn squares are taken down down, the wool will be washed and recycled into blankets to be sent either to Sierra Leone or a homeless charity in the local area.

Each donation of £5 = 1 square = 1 person to be remembered, celebrated, or to show someone special you love them. You can purchase as many as you

for his African style of jazz, fuelled with rhythm, soul and that je ne sais quoi that comes from his African roots, but that night, he and Larry displayed a catalogue of diverse jazz that had everyone engaged and wanting more however; they did end their set with Miriam Makeba’s ‘Bajabula bonke mangi lele phantsi’ leaving the audience on a high note in true African form.

I was thoroughly surprised by the anecdotes he threw in about Makeba; how she (and Harry Belafonte, the Calypso King) had advised him to not lose sight of his heritage in his music; as well as sacrificing a lucrative singing career in the 1970s to address the

UN about the plight of apartheid in South Africa at the time, or the fact that the late great Mama Africa came from a family that had a rich history of tribal psalms that inspired her many songs.

It was an educational evening for many, especially me, as I got a small glimpse into the lives of jazz artists I grew up hearing in the background as well as those on my iTunes playlist. The concert kicked off the EFG London Jazz Festival, the city’s largest musical festival of its kind, showcasing a vast amount of talent from various background genres and countries, which continues until Sunday 24 November. Find out more at www.londonjazzfestival.org.uk

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like. Each name will be placed on a board next to the finished tree (in the same week that it is completed) and the full list of those names will also be printed in the Stratford Herald in the week before Christmas and on the GAGA UK website.

The tree will be yarn bombed over 12-24 hours and the location of the tree will be revealed on 1 December.

Why does the tree’s location have to be kept a secret?

Yarn bombing is a quiet (somewhat underground) movement and it has a shock and awe value. Although Stratford District Council are fully behind the ‘The Remembering Tree’, and are aware of its location, the creators want to keep it a secret so that you can also get the same sense of pleasure from the surprise.

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KAREN DE VILLIERS

A Brazilian in my face

I WENT to a Convent School.

Explains a lot. I am neither afraid of nudity or nuns. Not that the two were ever present in the same room. I am just saying.

It’s winter here. I look something like Mrs Claus without her clothes on, but I go to the gym to try and retrain some sort of shape before all just hangs loose – literally. Ignore the huffle-puffs who groan as if in a porn film and those who strut about with bulging biceps, happy to listen to my music and dream of fitting into a Ralph Lauren creation before I die.

Off to the change room, strip, wrap towel and put the ‘plakkies’ on to avoid verucas. There are beautiful women around me, young, nubile goddesses who do the same.

Its fine, we are all endowed, some with boobs and some with flab. Overall we try to be discreet and not flaunt flesh in others faces. But then there are those …

Oh crocodile tears in my mocha!

There are those who for some reason, are deluded into thinking that we have all congregated at this venue for no other reason but to admire them in the buff.

They do not simply retreat to

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their lockers and change, no they must, dear Lord, subject me to their ‘au natural’ state until I want to drown them. What is it about these specimens?

Everything is on the other side of the room. Walk to the mirror to dry the hair. Back to the locker to apply the cream. Walk again to the mirror to brush the hair, back to check on emails and return to the mirror to apply the make-up.

Walk, walk and bloody walk around forever with boobs swinging and nether regions on display. You want me to look at you, and I am looking okay? I am sussing out your cup size and the obvious wax work down below.

Got it. And the point is?

Raises a few questions here: One, am I jealous? Normally this tribe are not of the goddess type. Two, are you trying to flirt with someone? Could be. Third.

Do you honestly believe you are so utterly alluring that it is your god-given duty to share your nakedness with the world? Must be.

But I for one do not fancy having your Brazilian flashing in my face. Some of us mortals are trying not to commit suicide in spandex so please, put it away!

Does this happen in the men’s changing rooms?

If there are those that think their bodies are there for adulation and praise, perhaps they can get together with my lot and ‘watch this space.’

I guess I must be jealous – trying to fold the rolls into the gympant and slink in the shadows with full costume and cap looking like a blue headed lizard, but I beg you, naked nasties with ‘feminine bits’, you just don’t do it for me.

Plucked peacocks early in the morning are never pretty.

That old yearning for ‘home’ lingers, despite a love for our adopted nation | HOME AND A BROAD | Do we transplanted South Africans

ever stop hankering after our roots?

by JANET HORNSBY A FEW WEEKS ago I dreamed that friends back in South Africa were admonishing me about living in the UK. “No,” they asserted, “now that you’ve moved there, you won’t ever be able to come back here.” I protested. I implored. But they were unyielding.

Thank goodness it was only a dream, probably sparked by plans for a holiday in SA. But my subconscious was wrestling with issues I thought I’d laid to rest. Even after almost five years in Britain, it was upsetting to contemplate permanently severing ties with my homeland. What if this was it, for good?

For hundreds of years – and as many reasons – people have made the move away from the land of their birth. But more than most, we South Africans seem to hanker after what we have left behind, yearning for all that is worthy about our roots.

Are we just overly sentimental, I wondered? I decided to quiz a few fellow Saffers about their experiences of settling in this green and pleasant land.

Between two cultures “Our culture is really strong,” says Yolanda, a mental health nurse who’s lived in the UK for 14 years, “so it feels like we have one foot in the UK and one still in South Africa.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I went back, and that stops me from settling completely.

Culturally, I will always be South African, but the UK does feel like home now and I think if I went back I’d feel a stranger.”

“I’ve been here two years and still haven’t acclimatised,” declares Mandy, a Durbanite working as a carer. “It doesn’t matter how many jerseys [or is that ‘jumpers’?] I put on; I’m still cold. And of course, I miss my daughter and friends. It’s difficult to form new friendships here. You don’t feel you can just pop in to visit someone – you have to be invited.”

Yolanda’s experiences are similar.

“When I first started working in the UK, staff would arrive in the mornings and not greet each other,”

she says incredulously. “And at times I can feel invisible, like when school mums are chatting but don’t bother to include me in the conversation.”

Capetonian admin assistant Lisa, who in 2012 returned to SA after nearly five years in the UK, agrees that it can be difficult to fit in. “I was afraid of offending others with my South African expressions,” she says.

“The transport system was tricky too… figuring out how to change trains and wondering where your bus would end up. But once I learned how it worked, it was really useful. I also loved low-cost flights to Europe, a cheap and reliable internet connection, the snow, and being able walk in the countryside, through farmers’ fields past cows and horses.”

Appreciating our new home Lisa is not the only expat to express appreciation for the quality of life we have in the UK, and most mention the security aspect.

Says Yolanda, “My children and I are safe going for bike rides out in the country, only minutes from home, and there’s no need for that heightened state of alertness I experienced in Johannesburg.”

Like many South Africans, when Capetonians Mike, a technical support desk supervisor, and his wife Jill, visited 15 years ago they intended to travel and gain work experience. But realising they could own a home and raise a family on one salary was a major draw card in their decision to stay. A health system that would support their asthmatic daughter was a bonus.

As a single mom Yolanda is thankful for the financial support she receives, and praises what she calls Britain’s Plan B: “Here there is always a back-up plan. If there was a real crisis, you don’t feel as though you’d be left alone to cope.”

Mother-of-two and cardiac nurse, Kerry, agrees: “Britain is an efficient society and that makes life much easier. Businesses and people here are reliable. They do what they say they will, so it’s not frustrating dealing with them.”

Dealing with the challenges

She also appreciates the secure lifestyle and the friendships she’s made by belonging to a churchbased community, “but sometimes I find life surreal,” she remarks. “In South Africa the majority are poor and battle to survive. In the UK, most have a job and somewhere to live, and many seem unaware of great suffering going on in the world.”

Lisa agrees, remembering the frustration she felt in her job with a borough council where she dealt with customers who demanded benefits. “They saw it as their right,” she explains.

For Lucinda, an accounts and admin assistant from Johannesburg, the demanding, first-world environment of a large UK corporate was challenging when she immigrated seven years ago. “It made the transition to life in Britain tough.

“But there are many things I appreciate about the UK now – like the reliable postal service and online shopping. Even buying groceries is a treat because of the variety. And, of course, being located so centrally for travelling abroad is a huge plus.”

Everyone I chat to misses family and friends, and most hanker after the climate and around-the-braai lifestyle, as well as our homeland’s warm, friendly people. Unlike me, though, none of them mentions a longing for the scenery and wildlife, and only some seem to share a powerful nostalgia that ebbs and flows.

Mike declares simply, “We do miss South Africa, but we’ve grown to love the UK.” And that’s what you hear when you talk to most relocated South Africans – a mixture of pleasure and sadness.

We relish the positive aspects of our adopted nation, but continue to feel (albeit some more deeply than others) inextricably bound to our great, deep continent. It’s a dichotomy that lingers.

‘Africa gets in your blood,’ we often hear said. Just a twee rationalisation of homesickness, or a whimsical explanation for the ties that continue to bind us? I’ll let you decide.

10

| 26 November - 2 December 2013 | thesouthafrican.com

Community

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SKA head says flagship SA astronomy project on track

| While the coming half-year will be a busy one for the scientists who use the existing array and the engineers who are building the remaining installations, Fanaroff said that some work had already begun. The SKA was already looking deep into the history of the universe

by BRETT PETZER PROFESSOR Bernie Fanaroff, the scientist in charge of the Square Kilometre Array that is slowly becoming a reality in the Karoo, says that the implementation of the multibillion-dollar project is proceeding

at speed.

While the coming half-year will be a busy one for the scientists who use the existing array and the engineers who are building the remaining installations, Fanaroff said that some work had already begun. The SKA was already looking deep into the history of the universe.

“We are very happy, most of the infrastructure is up now to be completed by March and the testing will be done by March also…The second antenna will be in place

by April to start intensive testing, but if you can fly over the site now you will see that the roads are in place, the optical fibre and

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electrical cables are all buried and all in place. The foundation for the Meerkat antenna is in place.

The building where we will be assembling the dishes are up” said Fanaroff. Fanaroff, who in April this year achieved South Africa’s highest honour, the Order of Mapungubwe (Silver), has

also been at the helm of a project to make an impact in the SKA’s immediate context, in the quiet town of Carnarvon. The fearsome intellectual heft concentrated in the SKA will, project leaders hope, be used to spread an idea of the power of science to the town’s high schoolers.

Who is allowed to render UK immigration advice?

BY STAFF REPORTER

ALMOST on a daily basis, the consultants at BIC hear stories from clients who have been advised incorrectly by unscrupulous immigration advisers, who are often not even allowed to render UK immigration advice. BIC therefore wants to warn persons in the UK, seeking UK immigration advice, to please note the following before they choose a UK immigration adviser; • In order to render immigration advice in the UK you have to be regulated by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner or OISC. They also have different levels of advisors, so depending on the complexity of a problem an advisor may assist you or not. All OISC advisers are required to display their certificates of registration or exemption. You can check whether somebody is registered at the OISC at the following website Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.

• The only exception to this rule is persons regulated by the Law Societies of England and Wales, and Scotland, the General Council of the Bar, the Institute of Legal Executives and some other highly professional bodies.

So unless someone is regulated as

set out above, they are prohibited from rendering UK immigration advice in the UK, and are committing an offence if they do so.

If you are looking for UK immigration advice, please do some homework, check to see whether the person or company is regulated as above and ask for referrals from satisfied clients. You will also be pleased to hear that BIC is registered with the OISC to Level 3, which means that we can provide you with immigration advice on all UK immigration matters.

For more information, please contact BIC at info@bic-immigration.com JP Breytenbach, Director of BIC, Breytenbachs Immigration Consultants Limited.

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thesouthafrican.com | 26 November - 2 December 2013 |

Business

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Mamba Mentors Finalists Announced After Record Number of Entries | London School of Business and Finance has announced

the names of five entrepreneurs who were shortlisted for the final stages of the programme

by STAFF REPORTER LONDON School of Business and Finance (LSBF) today announced the names of five entrepreneurs who were shortlisted for the final stages of Mamba Mentors, an initiative that provides guidance, expertise and financial support to budding selfstarters – with a particular focus on promoting ideas that build links between the UK and Africa.

Entrepreneurs from dozens of African countries submitted a record number of business plans to this year’s edition of the programme, which was first conceived by a group of international investors with a keen interest in the African economy.

Following just over two months of promotion, the project received more than 70 business plans, covering sectors ranging from agriculture and mining to international security and ecommerce.

After a detailed review by LSBF academics and a board of business experts, five business plans were shortlisted for potential investment.

The shortlisted entrepreneurs and business plans are: Alabi David - Cloud Flyers; Ivie Ebhota - Ruvie Beauty Clinic; John Nyamukondina - Joiada Investments; Tom Simmonds - Auderes Sport; Shazad Amin - eCommerce Enterprise “The variety and the strength of the business plans received this year was fantastic and reflects the huge potential for investment in the African markets.

The region is currently facing an entrepreneurship boom and our aim is to foment as many business ideas as possible by providing them with financial support and experience”, says James Durrant, founder of Mamba Mentors.

The shortlisted candidates will have their business plans considered for investment by a community of entrepreneurs and investors with wide experience in the African markets.

They will also get a free online course from LSBF’s online executive portfolio, offered in partnership with the e-learning platform InterActive.

Covering everything from marketing management to leadership and investment banking, the courses are targeted at entrepreneurs who want to acquire industry-relevant and practical skills in their field.

Infrastructure to lift South Africa’s growth speed limit | Brand South Africa’s recent Competitiveness Forum explored the

role infrastructure spending might play in catalysing SA's full potential

BY MARY ALEXANDER THE global financial crisis revealed developing-country economies’ vulnerability to the vicissitudes of the world economy. To reduce this fragility and make growth more robust, it is essential that South Africa build economically enabling infrastructure at home and northwards into the rest of Africa, it was concluded at the infrastructure breakaway session at Brand South Africa’s Competitiveness Forum last week.

The session’s panel was made up of Edison Corp’s Vivian Reddy, Stanley Subramoney of the PWC/ Nepad Foundation, Tabo Foulo from the Development Bank of South Africa and Sylvester Taku from E&Y. The panel was chaired

by Dr Martyn Davies, CEO of Frontiers Advisory. The South Africa Competitiveness Forum, the first hosted by Brand South Africa, was held at Gallagher Estate in Midrand on 5 November 2013.

The panel noted that the global crisis had led to a fall in South Africa’s GDP growth, from 5% in 2007, before the crisis hit, to a mere 3% in the second quarter of 2013. The question was asked: Is 3% South Africa’s growth speed limit? The key to breaking that limit, it was agreed, was a strong infrastructure that would encourage

competitive economic activity.

But what stands in the way of infrastructure development? The 2010 Fifa World Cup showed that South Africa can take on massive projects and complete them successfully, and on time.

Every single production deadline for the event was met, while the experience built up South Africa’s skills and institutional capacity for infrastructure development.

The problem, it seems, is the gap between plans and the money spent.

“There is a failure in getting projects from feasibility to bankability to final delivery,” Davies said.

Securing funds for infrastructure

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So how does South Africa ensure sufficient funds are being spent on infrastructure development?

One suggestion was to ringfence infrastructure spending; to have sovereign funds for specific projects. It was suggested that a dedicated fund be set up specifically for infrastructure projects.

Such a fund would have to be large, because not all projects embarked on end up being feasible.

And who would take the loss from infeasible projects? The return on infrastructure is broad and longterm, so a tax-based fund would be best – having the state take the risk. southafrica.info

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Business: Classifieds

| 26 November - 2 December 2013 | thesouthafrican.com Follow us on Twitter: @TheSAnews

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13

thesouthafrican.com | 26 November - 2 December 2013 |

Travel

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Athens - undimmed by austerity | Those concerned that the fabled delights of this most civilised of pleasure-loving Mediterranean capitals have been spoiled by endless belt-tightening should take heart; stately Athens has seen off much worse in its time

by MARIANNE GRAY I FEEL a bit of a fraud writing about the breath-taking city of Athens.

So many people have done it better than I can. People like Sophocles and Euripides, Lord Byron, Disraeli, Lawrence Durrell and Patrick Leigh Femor, all of whom had lifelong love affairs with this warm-hearted ancient city, its people, its streets, its ruins and buildings leaning against each other, faded by sun and dust.

Still today, strolling along narrow cobbled streets or through ancient sites where cicadas chirrup and pines or olive trees grow, it all seems unchanged.

I first lived in Athens a few decades ago when I was working as editor of The Athens News, then the English language daily newspaper. My daily walk to work was via the Acropolis past the Parthenon and back home through Plaka, a winding labyrinth of little alleys of handsome neo-classical facades packed with shops and restaurants.

It was heaven on earth, full of tantalizing smells of food cooking, the bright colours of fabrics, geraniums, painted pottery and jewelry, and always the noise of endless conversations.

There’s no such thing as a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in Athens discussion is in the blood, probably why the city produced so many philosophers.

Even though Greece is going through impossible political difficulties, Athens remains one of the world’s greatest cities. Perhaps a little shabbier in the economic crisis, definitely a little tattier with its floating population of refugees from neighbouring countries, but it is still an ever-fascinating cosmopolitan place.

Half way between Europe and Asia, with its jumble of GrecoRoman, Byzantine, Ottoman, neoclassical and modern buildings, it is the southernmost capital on the European mainland.

|A

|CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: One of the most famous panoramas in the world, from the

Acropolis (Image: Flickr/Ronny Siegel) | A seaside café near Piraeus (Image: Flickr/neajjean) | One of the city’s beautiful squares, where street life is authentic and happens 24 hours a day (Image: Flickr/612gr) | An alley in the Plaka district (Image: Flickr/Charlie Dave)

One of the world’s oldest cities with a history going back about 3,400 years, it is generally considered the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy. Sprawled across a hilly central plain and surrounded by mountains, Greater Athens is home to more than 4mil people. To many visitors it is an over-night stop before heading to Piraeus to catch a ferry and discover the islands or take a tour to Delphi or Corinth or Epidaurus.

But pause and spend some time in Athens. Wander through the Ancient Agora and the Roman Market or along the Dionysiou Aeropagitou boulevard constructed around the Acropolis to visit the Theatre of Dionysus or the Herodium or the Parthenon or the Erechtheum, opened in 405BC, with its six female statues of caryatids supporting the roof.

(Actually they are all now casts as five of them are in the Acropolis Museum and their sixth sister is in the British Museum.) Have a meal outdoors in one of Plaka’s many squares or go up to Syntagma Square, where Parliament is and soldiers parade in their pompommed shoes. While there have a coffee in the grand Grande Bretagne and think about Churchill narrowly escaping assassination in the hotel at Christmas 1944 when a bomb was found in the sewer beneath the building. End up at the New Acropolis Museum with its three levels of marvelously curated collections and an outdoor restaurant in the shadow of the Acropolis which has to be one of the most dramatic places in the world to sip an ouzo and reflect under the blue Aegean sky.

Life’s like that in Athens.

Definitely worth a visit.

London

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Zimbabwe Community

| 26 November - 2 December 2013 | thesouthafrican.com Follow us on Twitter: @TheSAnews

No Deal for Bananas as former Zim president’s son accused of benefit fraud | The son of Zimbabwe’s notorious first post-independence president Canaan Banana is being investigated for benefit fraud after being accused of claiming taxpayers’ money for a council house while living elsewhere with his wife – who won £95,000 on ‘Deal or No Deal’ in 2011.

by ALISON MONDAY FORMER Zimbabwean president Canaan Banana’s son faces a British benefit fraud investigation after being accused of claiming money for a council house while living elsewhere with his wife – who won £95,000 on TV quiz show Deal or No Deal.

Michael Banana is thought to have continued claiming cash for a council house in the UK despite living in a different town with his wife.

In an added twist, Banana told the authorities that he and his wife had separated so he could keep up the pretence of living apart.

The scam was exposed when undercover officers filming for a TV series documenting the UK’s worst fraudsters began following Caroline Banana after she didn’t declare her windfall.

Mrs Banana kept on claiming £6,147.92 in housing benefit, council tax benefit and income support even after winning £95,000 on the quiz show Deal or No Deal in November 2011.

While trailing her, investigators discovered that her husband Michael was living with her in Stoke, even though he continued to claim money for a council house in Stockport in Greater

| Michael Banana on Deal or No Deal

Manchester.

Steve Prince, who works at Stoke-on-Trent City Council and is in charge of the Banana’s case, was alarmed to see Mr and Mrs Banana acting like a couple while staking out Mrs Banana’s house and her children’s school in order to track her movements.

It was thought they had split up in 2008 but Mr Banana, also known as Michael Thabo, appeared alongside his wife in her episode of the Channel 4 show.

When investigators searched further they discovered photos on Facebook of the couple together on holiday and found Mr Banana still had his relationship status on

the site listed as married.

“She’s been claiming benefits from people like myself who contribute to that system”, Prince said.

“When she won the money it was time to say thank you for your help, I don’t need that money anymore.”

He was also shocked to discover that Mr Banana lived in luxury in an impressive state house in Zimbabwe before coming to the UK with his family as political refugees.

Mr Banana’s late father was Canaan Sodindo Banana, Zimbabwe’s notorious first postindependence president who

| Mrs Caroline Banana leaving the court

ruled the country for much of the 1980s and passed a law in 1982 forbidding jokes about his name.

He left his own legacy of scandal after he was exposed as a sexual predator who abused male members of his staff.

Following his trial in 1998 he was found guilty of 11 charges of sexual assault and sentenced to ten years in jail – nine of which were suspended.

He served only six months in an open prison before he died of

cancer in 2003.

While Mrs Banana has been sentenced to a 12-month community order and 215 hours of unpaid work, her husband is not yet facing criminal proceedings.

He has, however, been ordered to pay back the £2,485 he was overpaid in housing benefits- a decision he is appealing against.

The council have declared that they will take him to court if he does not pay up.

15

thesouthafrican.com | 26 November - 2 December 2013 |

Sport

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The Autumn Active Touch Leagues in London | Week 3 of the Autumn Active Touch Leagues in London saw all teams fired up. Each night there were serious battles, with every player trying their best to get their team closer to the finals.

BY TRACY ANDREW WE kicked off the Autumn Active Touch Leagues at Canary Wharf on Monday 18th November with Tumeke vs Shake n Bake. Shake n Bake scored some awesome touchdowns, but it just wasn’t enough to beat the strong side of Tumeke. The final score was 11 - 5.

The second game was between Look, Don’t Touch and Canary Dwarfs. Canary Dwarfs kicked the match off with a very quick touchdown. But with some great team work and fast hands Look, Don’t Touch did just enough to edge past winning the game 14 - 11.

On Tuesday 19th November at Active Touch in Wandsworth, Hot Custard took on Dark Matter in a tough, competitive game. Hot Custard and Dark Matter were going from touchdown to touchdown for most of the game. But ultimately Dark Matter kicked into overdrive

and managed to get ahead winning 8 - 5.

The next game was between Hot Custard Jagermaestros and Pimp My Side. Despite Pimp My Side scoring some fantastic touchdowns they couldn’t keep up with Hot Custard Jagermaestros who played out of their boots, winning the game 13 - 8.

On Thursday 21st November we saw Beer Swilling Vikings take on BBR London. Beer Swilling Vikings has increased their skills and learnt the game and are showing some promise. However BBR London was in great form showing some amazing hands and perfect skills to win 33 - 3.

The next game was Hot Custard vs Hot Custard Jagermaestros in an interclub clash. Hot Custard was the team to open up the scoring with some outstanding plays.

Hot Custard Jagermaestros did come back though scoring four touchdowns in a row to equal up the

The Proteas return to SABC

BY JEREMY BORTZ

I WAS thrilled to read this week that the Proteas would be returning to SABC with the national broadcaster and Cricket South Africa concluding a broadcast deal that will see ball-by-ball coverage return to television screens for all Proteas matches during the upcoming season.

The whole country will now be able to watch the one-day internationals against Pakistan, the Tests and one-day internationals against India and the Tests and T20′s against Australia. The deal also covers radio as 2000 FM will be providing live ball-by-ball commentary.

It is imperative our national teams are available for all to watch and while we are all able to watch Bafana Bafana live when they play at home, sadly this is not the case for the Springboks and until recently, the Proteas. This deal changes that and rightly so.

“We are obviously excited for all our fans with this wonderful news,” said CSA Chief Executive, Haroon Lorgat. “Having a relationship with our national broadcaster is key for us and I’m delighted that we have secured this agreement. We have plenty of international cricket this

summer and I am sure that our fans would love to follow the Proteas live in action’.

“Free to air TV coverage and SABC radio has always been important for us to take the game to every corner of our country as we pursue our vision of making cricket a truly national sport. Cricket needs the SABC and I would like to thank all those involved in securing this agreement for the benefit of not only both parties, but especially for our fans” added Lorgat.

For cricket to grow throughout the country, it needs to be seen. Children need to have cricketing heroes that they strive to emulate and supporters young and old need to develop a love for this great game. That will happen only when people can watch, understand and enjoy the sport on a regular basis. Supporters need to be able to watch what they’re reading about in the media otherwise they will likely lose interest.

Successful teams also always attract more supporters and with the Proteas being the best Test side in the world, now is the perfect opportunity to grow the fan base for the longer format of the game.

So hats off to both parties for bringing cricket back within the reach of all South Africans and let’s all get behind the Proteas.

scores by the halfway. Hot Custard then shifted into fifth gear scoring quick touchdowns in succession with great team work. The final score was 12 - 7 to Hot Custard.

We will be running some new Active Touch Leagues early in 2014 so if you would like some more information regarding these leagues or any Touch leagues then please feel free to send an email to tracy@ in2touch.com or have a look on our website www.in2touch.com

SPORT

26 November - 2 December 2013

NINE BOKS DOMINATE BARBARIANS TO FACE FIJI - P15

THE PROTEAS RETURN TO SABC - P15

NEWS FOR GLOBAL SOUTH AFRICANS

www.thesouthafrican.com

SPRINGBOKS FINISH THE SEASON ON A HIGH IN PARIS | The Springboks’ first victory over France in France in 16 years has capped off a season of marked improvement for Heyneke Meyer, Jean de Villiers and their team.

By STAFF REPORTER THE 19-10 win over France at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday evening, was the Springboks’ 10th out of 12 Tests this year, making the 2013 seasons statistically their most successful since 1998.

Including November 2012’s victories over Ireland, Scotland and England, the Boks have won 13 of their last 15 Tests.

With a winning percentage of 83.33%, the 2013 season will rank with those of 1995, when the Boks won all their games and the Rugby World Cup on home soil, 1998 (11 from 12 for 91.76%) and 2007 (14 from 17 for 82.35%) as the best since South Africa’s readmission in 1992.

The 47 tries the Boks scored in 2013 is also the most in a single season since 2007, when they scored 81 in 17 Tests. Since readmission in 1992, South Africa only got more tries in a season in 2007, 1999 (52 in 13 Tests) and 1997 (74 in 13 Tests). In 1998, they also scored 47.

Furthermore, the Springboks are the only side not to have lost a Test in the November Internationals since the last Rugby World Cup, with six wins in as many matches.

“We’ve had a good year and I’m really happy with the progress

we’ve made as a team and in our results in 2013,” said Meyer.

“To finish the season with three good wins in Cardiff, Edinburgh and Paris is special, but we realise we are far from where we want to be and will keep on working hard to achieve the goals we’ve set for ourselves.

“The players deserve a lot of the credit though. Not only for the way they’ve played this season, but also for being the most humble group of men I’ve worked with, who put in massive amounts of hard work on the training field and for being a team South Africa can be proud of.

“We also enjoyed tremendous backing in South Africa as well as abroad and we’d like to thank our supporters for standing behind the team .”

Springbok milestones in 2013: Their 73-13 win over Argentina at the FNB Stadium in Soweto was the biggest overall win in the history of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship / Tri-Nations.

The nine tries they scored against Los Pumas was the most ever in a Rugby Championship match.

The Springboks won their firstever Test over Australia at Suncorp Stadium when they beat the Wallabies by 38-12. It was also their first win in Brisbane since 1971 and the first time since 2001’s 20-15

| A JOB WELL DONE: Jean de Villiers (L) the South Africa captain and head coach Heyneke Meyer celebrate after their teams victory during the International match between France and South Africa at Stade de France on November 23, 2013 in Paris, France. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

win in Pretoria that they managed to keep the Australians try-less.

The 24-15 win over Wales in Cardiff was only second time since 1994 that the Welsh could not score

a try against the Springboks. The other time was in 2008.

South Africa’s 28-0 win at Murrayfield in Edinburgh was the first time since 1951 that Scotland

could not score a point against the Springboks.

The Springboks recorded their first victory over France in France since 1997.

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